Campaign Funds Will Top $110,000 In Boca Raton Races

In the end, more than $110,000 will have been poured into electing the Boca Raton City Council this year.

Candidates for the mayor`s post and two open council seats raked in great amounts of cash and contributions in their efforts to win office, final campaign contributions delivered to City Hall on Friday show.

But, true to his word, mayoral candidate Richard Robinson`s last report showed he collected no additional money since he broke the record with $40,000 in contributions two weeks ago.

Mayoral candidate Emil Danciu came in with a total of $12,975, although he bankrolled about $9,500 of the campaign himself.

``I refused to take any big contributions,`` said Danciu, who has billed himself as a candidate with no favors to pay back.

Council candidates Bill Smith Jr. and incumbent Al Edmunds each topped $20,000 in contributions, according to their reports. Wanda Thayer, the third candidate, had not yet submitted her final report, which must be postmarked midnight Friday.

Thayer had collected about $10,000 two weeks ago.

Mayoral candidate Jeremiah Clifford, a Florida Atlantic University senior, took in about $1,100 in contributions.

Highland Beach Town Commission candidates have been working hard to drum up financial support for their campaigns if their final reports filed Friday are any indication.

Each candidate raised at least $640 since the last campaign contribution report was filed, on Feb. 20.

David Robinson garnered the greatest number of total dollars, at $2,245, but Robert Gregerson was not far behind, with $2,060.

Both Robinson and Gregerson raised nearly $1,500 in the last two weeks.

Abe Futernick and Robert Scholz raised approximately $640 each in the period since the last report.

The majority of the contributions are small amounts from well-wishers in the candidates` condominiums.

Candidates have used their funds on postage, campaign brochures and newspaper ads.

Mary McCarty, a candidate for Seat No. 1 in Delray Beach, led all other candidates in fund-raising with $16,227 in her campaign coffers. As of Friday, McCarty had spent more than $14,000 of her contributions.

Her opponent, Elaine Roberts, raised $6,376, but had just $155 left.

In the race for Seat No. 3, incumbent Marie Horenburger garnered $7,965 in contributions, while her opponent, Gene Slattery, raised just $2,117. Slattery`s campaign fund included $1,000 of his own money.

In Boynton Beach, mayoral candidate Bob Ferrell topped the city fund-raising record set earlier in the campaign season by mayoral hopeful Walter ``Marty`` Trauger.

Ferrell, a former Boynton Beach vice mayor, raised $16,945 in contributions and in-kind donations, while Trauger added only $467 to his earlier total of $10,368.

Ferrell`s contributions include $4,500 from himself, $1,000 from Florida Palm Aire, a Pompano Beach developer, and $2,200 from six real estate agents or builders, only two of whom have offices in Boynton Beach.

Other contributions include $700 from three farmers Ferrell said were supporting him to make sure the county trashfill was not located west of Boynton Beach and $500 from SAFEPAC, the Florida Atlantic Builder`s political action committee.

Political neophyte Robert Walshak was next in the mayoral fund-raising, with $2,899, with incumbent Mayor Nick Cassandra close behind with $2,295.